James Hird begins legal action against the AFL for breach of due process following Essendon charges

Updated
Thu 22 Aug 2013, 5:29 PM AEST

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James Hird takes AFL to court over publication of dossier

ABC News

James Hird's legal team has lodged a writ against the AFL at the Victorian Supreme Court this morning.

The claim is for Hird being been denied natural justice in a season-long doping probe, and demands the AFL's charges be heard by an independent tribunal instead of the league's commission.

Hird's lawyers Ashurst Australia are seeking an injunction to prevent the charges served by the AFL against the Essendon coach being heard by a panel that includes AFL chief executive Andrew Demetriou or any Commissioner who has been given access to the ASADA interim report.

The claim also seeks to stop the hearing going ahead until Hird's legal team has been given full access to all information referred to in the interim report, totalling approximately 65,000 pages.

Hird claims the actions by the AFL this year has prevented him being able to fully carry out his role as Essendon coach.

He is seeking damages and all costs from the AFL and had requested from the League that no hearing take place until after next month's finals series.

The lodgement of the claim by Hird was in reaction to the AFL's release yesterday of its grounds for charging Hird, assistant coach Mark Thompson, football manager Danny Corcoran, Dr Bruce Reid and the Essendon club.

The grounds for charges released by the AFL details allegations that the club exposed players to significant health and safety risks by administering thousands of injections of questionable substances.

It also suggests coach Hird promoted the use of peptides, despite protests from the club doctor.

He said the release of the details of the charges was an "ambush" with the AFL's lawyers only notifying Essendon of its intentions minutes before making the documents public.

"Courtesy would dictate that the AFL would have given adequate notification of the release of the charges so I could prepare," Hird said yesterday.

"The release of a letter by Dr Bruce Reid to me that formed part of the confidential ASADA investigation is in breach of due process. The letter released in isolation is designed to damage my reputation."

"The credibility is that the governance that we thought throughout all of the AFL clubs was in such strong hands, that nobody saw this problem coming. Nobody saw this coming anywhere."

AFL Chairman, Mike Fitzpatrick, will host a special meeting of AFL club presidents to discuss the crisis on Thursday afternoon.

Former Western Bulldogs president David Smorgon said clubs will be telling the AFL they are anxious to have the matter resolved.

"When Essendon Football Club is front page, back page and every other page, it is of course denying exposure to the other clubs," Smorgon said.

"It's denying exposure to some of the sponsors that pay huge money to get their photos in the press. It's obviously not good for the game and not good for any of the stakeholders including Essendon Football Club."